Another Chance
by Malika Ariya Amari
Summary: She found him shortly after he fell unconscious, half dead and bloody. Abigail had enough strength to get the man she found to her mother, a good healer. Once awake, the former Templar captain demands answers. When she gives him his answers, Abigail finds that the man is more than just injured from battle. Rated for language, future scenes, and brief nudity. BEING REWRITTEN!
1. Chapter 1

**Another Chance**

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Dragon Quest, its characters, or its storyline. Level-5 and Square Enix have all rights to the Dragon Quest world. Unless stated otherwise, any characters and storyline you don't recognize are mine.**_

The man staggered onward from the small town that the Holy Shrine once resided. Unlike what he originally thought, his injuries much worse. Blood oozed out of his injuries, blood loss beginning to kick in. He feels himself become unconscious, pain being his only companion. His body hits the unforgiving ground, his injuries screaming in agony as he lay there. He lay motionless on the ground, no sound coming from him. He was just too weak to keep going, his injuries taking their toll on him. The man laid there for ten minutes before the sound of footstes hitting the hot sand filled the air.

"Father, I found someone!" shouted a female voice. "Looks heavily injured, too!"

"I'll go look for the monsters that injured him." stated an older man's voice. "Take him to your mother and tell her he needs medical attention fast."

"Yes, sir!" stated the female voice.

A woman with long brown hair gets to the man's side, hands gingerly turning him to check his pulse. A weak smile comes to her face when she feels life still going through his veins.

'Its weak.' thought the woman as she lifted his right arm. 'I better hurry.'

Getting his arm around her shoulders and placing an arm around his hip, the twenty-four year old quickly makes her way to the home she lived in with her family. The man felt heavier than he looked, the decorative clothing causing the weight issue. The man makes no sound as the woman slowly gets him to the safety of her family's home. The sound of her panting begins to fill the air as the woman slowly made her way to the home she shared with her parents and brother.

As much as she wanted to stop to catch her breath, she knew that the unkown man would die if she did. The woman looked the man over as she walked painfully slow, wanting to take in a few features. Despite the grime and blood, the man's savior noted the anger etched into his features. Underneath it all, she knew that it would swallow him whole. She knew that it would kill him before he experienced what life really had to offer and before the Goddess wanted to reclaim his soul. The woman looks forward again, seeing the home she's grown up in since birth.

"Abigail, what's wrong with this man?" asked an older woman's voice.

"Mom, this man is seriously injured." answered the woman, Abigail, looking over in the direction of the voice. "He needs our help!"

"Bring him in and lay him down onto the spare bed." stated the woman with a nod. "When I'm done, I need you to wrap his wounds. Make sure they aren't too tight or too loose this time."

"Yes, ma'am." said Abigail.

Continuing her slow trek to the house, the woman sees her ten year old brother standing just inside the door.

"Do you need help, Abigail?" inquired the boy.

"Yes, please." Abigail smiled weakly. "Help would be lovely."

"Too bad, you aren't gettin' any from me!" stated the boy.

As much as Abigail wanted to yell for her brother to get his lazy butt over and help her with the man she had hold of, she bit her tounge. Yelling at the boy would get the mysterious man into the house and onto the spare bed in the guest room of the house. The man Abigail held up seemed to have a strong air about him, one that made it known that he's the one in charge.

'How am I going to help mom seal the injuries?' thought Abigail as she slowly got to the house. 'I hope that we don't have to sew his injuries closed.'

"You help your sister right now!" shouted the older woman. "I didn't raise any child of mine to be a lazy bum!"

"But mom, she's just as lazy!" whined the boy.

"She helps me when I need her and goes with your father." growled the woman. "What have you done?"

Silence fills the air as Abigail got to the door, the man's weight finally bringing her down. She immediately gets up with the man still in her arms, still struggling to get him inside.

"Samual, why aren't you helping your sister?" inquired the man from before. "I thought I told you to help when and if she or myself find someone out in the desert. That aside, I didn't find any monsters around. I think he might have been involved in that explosion we heard earlier."

The majority of the injured man's weight shifts from Abigail, signaling that the woman's father took hold of him. The twenty-nine year old woman helps her father get the dark haired man to the spare room, finding the sheets already pulled to the foot of the bed.

"Abigail, help your mother." stated the man. "Do exactly as she says."

"I will, father." said Abigail. "I always do as I'm told."

"That's my girl." smiled the man.

"Patrick, will you go pick up some more medicinal herbs?" inquired Abigail's mother as she entered the room. "I'm afraid I'll be using up the last of our supplies."

"I will, Anna." answered Patrick as he turned to his wife. "I'll be back in thirty minutes."

"Abigail, go get the bandages and a bowl of hot water." commanded Anna as Patrick left.

"Yes, ma'am." stated Abigail, rushing towards the chest of drawers and opening the top drawer. "Here are the bandages. Thank the goddess its unwittingly hot out."

With that, the woman hurries out the door once she handed her mother the roll of flesh colored bandages. Anna smiles after her daughter, the last of Abigail's footsteps leaving the house.

"That girl is going to do many great things when she marries." murmured Anna.

The older woman takes off the dark haired man's decorative items, boots, and shirt. Anna finds multiple wounds on his torso, his blood sticky and caking the dirt that came off his clothing. There were bits of arrow in his belly, pieces of the tip of the arrows protuding from his rather irritated skin. Getting up to find a pair of tweezers to pull out the pieces of wood and metal, Anna begins to wonder just what this man went through to receive such injuries. The elderly woman returns to the man's side once she finds what she's looking for. She begins to take out the unwanted pieces of weapon in the younger man before her. As she is taking out the arrow heads, Anna hears her daughter's footsteps re-enter the house, the sound of water sloshing around in a bucket is also heard as her daughter made her way back towards the guest room.

"I'm sorry that it took so long." heaved Abigail. "I didn't want to spill any water on the way back here."

"You're getting better, my dear daughter." smiled Anna. "Please bring it over here and prepare several rags for cleaning this man's injuries."

"Yes, ma'am." said Abigail as she stepped slowly towards the spare room.

Abigail sees her brother standing near the door to the spare bedroom, a mischievious smile on his face.

"I'll help you with that." stated the boy as he grabbed the bucket.

The boy yanks the bucket away, causing Abigail to stumble forward and water to spill all over the floor.

"Samual!" shouted Abigail. "How are we supposed to clean that man's injuries now you that caused me to spill a large chunk of water? That man needs to have his injuries cleaned before we even begin to put medicinal herbs into them!"

"Samual, go get more water!" Anna demanded.

"But momma!" whined Samuel.

"NOW!" shouted Anna angrily.

Samual sighed heavily as his sister releases the bucket. Abigail hurried into the room once her brother has the bucket, taking the arrow heads off the bed and waited for the last of the arrow heads to be placed into her hands. Anna places the last of the bloody pieces of metal into her daughter's hands, allowing her to take them to the room she and Patrick shared. When Abigail returns, she sees her mother grinding the medicinal herbs, preparing them to put into the gaping injuries. Samual returns with the bucket, the water level reaching halfway up the wooden container.

"I'll clean his wounds before you put in the herbs." stated Abigail as she carefully took the bucket from her little brother. "Thank you, Samual."

The boy crosses his arms as he watches his mother and sister work on getting the unknown man in the room healed. The boy stood in front of the door, his head tilted to the side as he continued to watch his mother and sister. He sensed something dark in this man, something sinister and cruel. Samual didn't want his family to suffer because of this strange man, especially if this man held such dark emotions and air.

"I have more medicinal herbs." Patrick's voice called from the front door. "Do you – who in the world dropped the bucket in the hallway?"

"Samual grabbed the bucket when I was about to enter this room. He tried to take it from me and caused the spill." answered Abigail. "I honestly don't have time to clean up the water. I fear for this man's life, I fear he will return to the Goddess if I stopped to clean up the water."

"Samual, please clean up the water." sighed Patrick as he appeared in the doorway, staning directly behind his son.

The ten year old moves out of his father's way, allowing him to enter the room. Samual takes his leave to find some rags for both the floor and the man. Abigail smacks her forehead when she realizes she forgot some rags.

"I'm sorry, mother, I need to get the rags I forgot." sighed Abigail as she heads to the door.

"I brought you some, Abby." stated the boy as he returned to the room.

"Thank you, Sam." said Abigail.

"You're welcome." stated Samual.

The moment his sister has a hold of the rags for the man, he turns to the water on the floor. Abigail quickly turns back, hoping her mother will wait until she can clean up the scratches, scrapes, deep cuts, and burns on the man sustained from what happened. She get to the right side of the man, just opposite of her mother. Wetting on of the rags, the brown haired woman begins to clear the more serious wounds. Her purple eyes look to the man's face, seeing his face begin to contort into pain as the twenty-four year old brought the rag across his injuries. Abigail notes how filthy the man looked now that she cleared some of his torso of blood and dirt.

'I'll ask dad if he wouldn't mind cleaning this man up.' thought the ashe haired woman as she continued to clean the brunette's wounds. 'I'll wrap up his injuries once mom has them coated in medicine. I'll need to leave to pick up some clothing for this man.'

"You've gotten better, Abigail." commented Patrick, bringing his daughter out of her thoughts. "I wonder if you'll do well as a defensive mage."

"I guess we'll find out once this man is patched up." smiled Abigail.

Patrick smiles at his daughter, thankful for the blessing he raised.

"Patrick, will you bring over a clean rag?" inquired Anna. "Will you dampen it as well? I'd like to have it on this man's forehead to help ease the fever that has hit him."

"I will." answered Patrick.

Abigail dipped her rag into the bucket of water, wringing it out once its out. Half of the man's injuries now had herbs rubbed into them, the green herbs soaking into his formerly cleaned injuries. Abigail returns to cleaning his injuries, thankful the man isn't concious.

"I'll wrap his wounds up when all the medicine is on." said Abigail. "I just hope this man isn't in too much pain."

A worried tone wormed its way into Abigail's voice as she finished the cleaning the last of his injuries.

"Abigail, I'll leave you to do." stated Anna. "I need to get back to the store once I have his injuries covered in the medicinal herbs."

"Okay." stated Abigail. "I'll watch over him as he sleeps. I don't know when he'll wake up, _if_ he wakes up."

Anna smiles at her daughter, thankful that she will make do on her word. Abigail smiled as her mother finished her work, placing the last bit of medicine into the man's left biscep. The twenty-four year old sighed as her mother grabbed one of the wet rags, wiped her hands of any medicinal herbs on them, and left the room. Abigail grabbed the bandages that sat on the opposite side of the stranger, her eyes going over his injuries.

Lifting the man's upper body, the woman begins to wrap his torso. The roll of bandages going around the man's torso three times, Abigail bringing the roll down slightly as she did so. The ashe haired woman looks for a knife to cut the bandages. Sighing, Abigail leaves the room to grab a knife. If she wanted to heal someone properly, she needs to be more on the ball when it comes to having all materials gathered. Upon entering the kitchen, the twenty-four year old is met with a different man sitting at the table. The man had silver hair, amber eyes, wore a white shirt, beige pants, and brown shoes. She gives the man an uneasy look, unsure if she should ignore him or make conversation.

"Hello." said Abigail.

The man looks at her with a smile, eyes lighting up as he stood from his seat.

"Hello." answered the man as he stepped towards Abigail. "My name is Will. I'm here to see your father. Is he in?"

"My father is in, but he's helping me with an injured man at the moment." stated Abigail. "I'll tell him you're here when he returns with a wet rag. If you'll excuse me, I need to finish wrapping the man's injuries."

With that, the ashe haired woman went to the cutilery drawer and grabbed a knife. As she started to make her way back to the injured man's room, Will grabbed her left arm.

"May I ask your name?" inquired the man.

"My name is Abigail." answered the violet eyed woman. "Excuse me."

Yanking her arm from the man, Abigail hurriedly returned to the man in the spare room. As much as she wanted to go find her father and tell him about the strange man in the dining room, the injured man remained a top priority for Abigail. She wasn't going to let this man have infected injuries as she didn't want to risk losing him, knowing that he still had a long path before him. Returning to the man's side, Abigail cuts the bandage away from the roll and ties it. As she begins to wrap the man's bicep, Patrick returns with a damp rag. He walks over to the stranger's right side and placed the rag onto his forehead.

"You are getting better in bandaging the wounded, Abigail." commented Patrick, a proud smile appearing on his face.

"I would hope so." smiled Abigail. "I know I'm not as good as mother, but no one said that you're perfect at something right away. Father, you have a visitor in the dining room. He asked specifically for you. He said his name is Will."

Patrick's eyes widen at the name as his smile dropped.

'What is Will doing here?' thought the older man. 'I told him not to come until winter.'

"Thank you, Abby." said Patrick.

"You're welcome, Father." said Abigail. "I was going to ask if you wouldn't mind cleaning this man, but it seems you may be busy speaking with your friend."

"I'll do it." said Patrick. "Will is here unannounced. He wasn't supposed to be here intil winter."

Abigail finishes wrapping the man's bicep and ties it off. She gives her father a confused look, hoping that this wasn't a serious matter.

"Don't worry, everything is going to be alright." said Patrick. "Will you go to town and pick up some clothing for our injured guest? I would lend him some of mine, but this man looks much smaller than me."

"I will." said Abigail. "I think I know what sizes to get him."

Abigail and her father leave the room as Patrick closes the door behind himself and his daughter. He takes her to the main door of the house, hoping this visit from his friend didn't mean problems.

"Samual, I need you to go outside and play." called the head of the house.

"Okay." answered Samual.

_**A/N I decided that I wanted to make something as a 'What would happen if...' kind of story for Marcello from Dragon Quest VIII. We don't hear about him after the fight on Holy Neos and we hear nothing of him at the end of the game, so I made my own conclusion of what happened to him after the fight at the shrine.**_

_**Update: The reason behind the rewrite for this story is due to the fact that I have placed Marcello, as a whole, completely out of character. I am in the process of fixing this and will take a while to fix it all. I have also removed the chapter and chapter titles from each of the documents saved on my flash drive. I don't need to put chapters or titles for these. They are already in order. This is going to be a project to fix and I do intend to finish this story, but I need to have Marcello in character if I wish to make this a story about him changing as he goes on with his life with a female companion. This rewrite involves reworking the entire story that I have for Marcello already. This will take a while, so please be patient with me as I work on this rewrite.**_

_**~Malika Ariya Amari**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Another Chance**

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Dragon Quest, its characters, or its storyline. Level-5 and Square Enix have all rights to the Dragon Quest world. Unless stated otherwise, any characters and storyline you don't recognize are mine.**_

_**NOTE: To avoid confusion, I will be switching between Marcello and Patrick.**_

"Patrick, its been awhile." said Will as his friend entered the room.

"Will, what are you doing here?" inquired the man with a scowl. "Its not winter yet. You have no reason to be here."

"Why should I have to wait for winter to come see an old friend and to see the future bride that your wife promised me?" retorted Will.

"I am not letting you, a man of forty, to have my daughter." growled Patrick. "Abby belongs to someone her age, not one who is sixteen years her senior."

"Abigail should be married by now Patrick." sighed Will. "Don't you want her to be well off?"

"I'd sooner have her married to Marcello, the injured man my wife and daughter are caring for." deadpanned Patrick.

"Marcello?" inquired Will. "As in the Marcello who has a bounty on his head for all the crimes he's commited before the explosion at the Holy Shrine?"

"How do you know of Marcello?" asked Patrick, eyes narrowing. "What of these crimes?"

Will stared at Patrick with disbelief, baffled by his unsuspecting friend.

"Okay, I know you well enough to know you aren't kidding about this." sighed Will. "I'll tell you about Marcello. Marcello is a man who has a very hefty bounty on his head. He has killed the Lord High Priest in Savella, took the Lord High Priest's place for a brief period of time, and killed several innoccents in the town the Shrine once stood."

"Would you hold it against me if I didn't believe you on this?" inquired Patrick.

* * *

He woke to the sounds of talking, the voices a bit too quiet for him to hear what is being said. His eyes never opening as he realized he lay on a bed, a blanket covering him. He feels something on his forehead, something cold and damp.

'Now that I think about it.' he thought. 'I don't feel well.'

He breaks free from his thoughts when someone enters the room, quietly coming to him. The footsteps soon stop on his left.

"I hoped you would wake up by now." stated a female voice he didn't recognize. "Guess you were hit harder than I thought."

This woman sounded like it was around his age, maybe a little older. He soon feels hands go to his arm and take off something, something he hadn't noticed before then. He feels hands go to his arm and take off something, something he hadn't noticed before then.

'Bandages?' thought the raven haired man. 'Why am I bandaged up?'

He remembered being at the Holy Shrine and giving a speech. Nothing came to him after that, like he was hit on the back of the head or blacked out before commiting whatever it was to memory. Soon enough, the hands on his arm soon leave.

"Abigail, are you checking on this man again?" inquired an older female voice. "His body is still recovering from his injuries."

"Yes, ma'am." answered the younger female voice, Abigail. "I'm worried. He should be up by now."

"He'll wake up in time, sweetheart." came an older man's voice. "He is probably exhausted from that fight at the Holy Shrine."

With that, his memories returned to him. He remembered fighting his brother, his brother's friends, losing, and that explosion. He held onto the ledge of where the Holy Shrine once stood, debating on whether or not he wants to leave the world of the living or not. Gravity made his answer for him, pulling him down. However, his brother saw differently, wanting him to live. His brother saw fit that he was worth living, saw that he would rather have him see that the brother he's hated his entire life saved his life. These memories stung him something fierce, as if he could still feel the blows from the people who gave him these injuries.

'I'll make him regret the day he saved my life.' thought the man. 'I'll make him see that he should've let me fall to my death.'

He could faintly hear the two women talking and footsteps. When hands went to his stomach, his eyes snapped open and his right hand went to the young woman's throat.

"Who are you?" growled the jade eyed man.

"Calm down, sir." soothed a woman with purple eyes and brown hair tied back into a ponytail. "My mother and I saved your life. My name's Abigail."

His hand never left Abigail's neck, his eyes glaring up at her. He didn't like having pity taken on him and he certainly didn't like people thinking he couldn't care for himself, especially when he could bandage himself up.

"I'll bandage myself up." said the raven haired man. "I don't need your help."

"And how are you going to get up?" inquired Abigail, worry obvious. "You're not strong enough to get up on your own yet."

"I can get up on my own." growled the man angrily.

"Alright." stated Abigail. "Let go and I'll step back to give you room to get up."

The man releases Abigail's neck, giving the woman a chance to back away. The man soon begins to slowly sit up, wincing in pain as he did so. Abigail watched in concern as the man before her held back what she believed to be a sound of pain.

"I see that he's awake." stated an older man's voice from the door. "And he's trying to get up on his own when he knows all too well that he's not strong enough to do so."

The raven haired man sent a glare towards the man, disliking that the man spat out the truth. Now that the jade eyed man had his eyes open and looking at the man in the door, he saw the resemblence between the older man and Abigail.

"Father, I tried to help him." sighed the woman. "He's a very stubborn man."

The older man laughed at this, finding his daughter's words amusing.

"That he is." grinned the man. "Do you remember your name, young man?"

"It's Marcello." stated the raven haired man.

"Now, Marcello, let my daughter help you." stated the man. "She knows what she's doing."

Marcello grumbles something under his breath as Abigail drew close to him, gently helping him sit up. The rag on Marcello's forehead falls to his lap, lightly wetting the sheets that pooled around him.

"I'll only be changing the bandages." said Abigail. "Mother will put in more ground medicinal herbs into your wounds once you've eaten something."

The two hear footsteps leave the room, leaving the two alone. Marcello doesn't reply to Abigail's statement, his eyes focused on the wall ahead of him. He feels Abigail's eyes on his face for a few seconds, then feels them go to his stomach. Two sets of footsteps are soon heard coming towards the room. Abigail, ignoring the footsteps, takes the bandages off, the cloth stained with blood and a whitish-green colored substance.

"Are the bandages supposed to be that color?" inquired a boy's voice from the door.

"Samual, get mother." barked Abigail. "Looks like an infection is setting in."

Marcello looks at the bandages and sees the disgusting mess of color on them, a set of footsteps running from the door fills the air. The second set enters the room, a man with silver hair and amber eyes entered Marcello's line of sight. The raven haired man felt anger rise in him, the silver hair reminding him of someone he really wished to never have cross his mind again for as long as he lived. As much as he wanted to give an angry shout at the man, Marcello felt his energy being sapped away.

"No wonder why I feel much too warm and tired." stated Marcello.

"Looks like you'll eat later." stated the older woman's voice from before. "Abigail, I know you just got him sitting up, but he needs to be laying down in order for me to put in the medicine properly."

"Sorry, Marcello." sighed Abigail as she took hold of Marcello's left shoulder.

Marcello groans in pain as he lays down, his face twisting in pain. The silver haired man watched as Abigail picks up the rag and hurries to the water bucket in the corner. Dipping it into the cool water and wringing out the excess, she returns with a newly dampened rag and places it onto Marcello's forehead. He glares up at Abigail, disliking her more for taking pity on him. The newly dampened rag felt nice on his feverish forehead, giving him a much needed feel of cool.

"Do you know how long you've been sleeping, young man?" inquired Anna.

"No." came the curt answer.

"For five and a half days." stated Abigail. "I was beginning to worry that you wouldn't wake up."

"He'll be fine once this infection is gone." said Anna. "Young man, I'm afraid that you'll be in bed for a while."

"WHAT!" glared Marcello. "I'm _NOT_ staying in bed the entire stay!"

"Calm down, Marcello." stated the silver haired man. "You're stuck here for a while. When you've been deemed well enough, I'm taking you to Lord High Priest Rollo. You have quite the bounty placed on your head."

Abigail glared at the platinum haired man to her left, her amethyst orbs sending her dislike towards him. Her eyes meet Marcello's emerald orbs, locking onto each other once Abigail's became calm.

"Marcello, its important that you rest while you're here." stated Abigail softly. "Trust me, if I could heal your injuries with magic, I would. As it is, I can't use spells properly."

"Abigail, get the bandages." commanded Anna as she went to Marcello's side. "Samual, get me the medicinal herbs and the grinding tools."

"Yes, ma'am." said the siblings in unison.

"Will, leave." stated Anna. "You're not going to help, so I ask that you leave."

Samual leaves the door way, heading into what Marcello believed to be the kitchen. Abigail went to a chest of drawers and opened the top drawer. She picks up the flesh colored bandages and a stained cloth from the drawer under the top drawer. Will sends a glare to the older woman, a rather dark hatred filling his eyes as he did so.

"Will, what did my wife just tell you to do?" inquired Patrick, making Marcello jump.

"I'll leave the room, but I'm not leaving until Abigail is mine and when this scumbag is deemed healthy enough for travel."

Samual returns with medicinal herbs and the grinding tools, then leaves without so much a command.

"I would like to clean his wounds before you put in the herbs, mother." stated Abigail. "I refuse your demand to be your betrothed, Will. I have no interest in you."

"You'll need to go first." nodded Anna. "I need to grind up the herbs and use a little water to make the proper medicine for him. Abigail, we'll discuss this entire thing later. Will, please leave."

Abigail sighs as she dips the stained rag into the bucket and wrings it out, like with the rag on Marcello's head. She returns to Marcello's right side, worry etching more deeply onto her face. As Abigail did so, Will leaves the room with a glare still on his face. Abigail leans over Marcello's stomach, trying to keep from giving him more pain than he was already in. A hiss exits through Marcello's lips, his eyes screwed tightly shut. He gritted his teeth as Abigail cleaned his injuries, the whitish-green pus the wounds excreted flowing out more as soon as it got wiped up.

"Gently." growled Marcello.

"I am being gentle." deadpanned Abigail as she continued to clean up Marcello's injuries.

The wounds never stop oozing out whiteish-green pus, making Abigail worry. She sighs as she cleans the irritated injuries, allowing her mother to gently rub in the ground up and slightly watered medicinal herbs. The head of the house walks toward Abigail and places a hand onto his daughter's shooulder, motioning for her to follow him outside.

"Abigail, I need to have a word with you." stated the man.

"Mother, I'll be right back." said the young woman.

"Hurry back." stated Anna. "I need you to wrap up the injuries on this man's stomach."

"I will, mother." said Abigail, leaving with her father.

Patrick stops just outside of the door, his daughter standing beside him.

"Abigail, I need you to travel with Marcello once he's better." whispered the family patriarch.

"Why, father?" Abigail whispered back. "Aren't I needed here?"

"Abigail, you need to experience life for yourself. I'm also sending you and Marcello away from here. I don't want you to leave with Will. He's going to try and do somethings he'll want to forcefully take from you." whispered Patrick. "As your father, I would love for you to see the world with your own eyes as the main reason for you to leave."

"Are you sure about this, father?" whispered Abigail.

"Yes." whispered Patrick. "Go when he is healthy enough. Experience life and don't come back until you feel like you have seen the world. I'll make sure that Will is away from here during that time."

Abigail nodded with a smile, then returned to Marcello.

"His injuries are covered. Go ahead and wrap his injuries. Stay near while he is awake." commanded Anna.

"Yes, Ma'am." said Abigail. "Are you ready, Marcello?"

"I hate this." growled the raven haired man. "Touch my injuries and you die."

"I know, Marcello." stated Abigail as she put an arm behind Marcello's shoulders.

Placing a hand onto his chest, the ash haired woman helped the jade eyed man into a sitting position.

"I'll bring you the shirt you got for him." said Patrick.

"Okay." smiled Abigail. "Thank you, father."

"You're welcome, sweetheart." grinned Patrick as he brought over Marcello's new and clean shirt.

"You should be better soon, Marcello." stated Abigail as she wrapped the man's torso. "I'll be here when you need me. If you want something, please let me know."

"I would like something to eat." said Marcello as he flinched slightly.

"Not too tight is it?" inquired Abigail.

"Not enough to worry about." stated Marcello.

"Alright." said Abigail as she started to finish up her bandaging. "I'll bring in some stew. Father, do you mind helping Marcello with his shirt?"

"I do not mind in the least." stated Patrick. "I hope that this fits. I doubt anything of mine will fit your lean frame."

The raven haired man took note of Patrick large frame, silently agreeing with the man as Abigail left the room. Marcello sighed as he lifted his arms, allowing Patrick put the shirt onto him. The less he moved his torso the better, giving him a chance to heal properly. Regardless of how much he wanted to be out of this place, Marcello knew he had to heal before he could travel anywhere.

"It looks like my daughter found the proper size for you." stated Anna. "Looks good on you, despite being a rather simple looking shirt."

Marcello says nothing, sleep slowly easing itself into his mind. Footsteps enter the room, causing the injured man to look towards the door.

"It's rather bland, but I would rather not upset your stomach." said Abigail, coming into Marcello's view. "After you get something into your stomach, you should rest. In fact, you look rather tired right now. Eat a little bit and I'll help you lay down."

Marcello takes the bowl from Abigail's hands slowly, the spoon already in the bowl. The first bite made him realize how hungry he was, a fact that he failed to notice until that moment. Marcello wolfed down his meal, hunger taking control.

"Bring him another bowl when he's done, Abigail." stated Anna.

"I will, mother." stated Abigail. "That is, only if he wants another bowl."

The man hands the bowl to Abigail, hoping for another bowl.

"I'll take another bowl." said Marcello.

"I'l bring you another if you say 'Please'." stated Abigail with a small smile.

"Please." deadpanned Marcello, on the verge of rolling his eyes.

Abigail smile grows, ignoring the slightly irritated tone in Marcello's voice. She leaves the room, her mother following behind her. Patrick stood close to the door, a thoughtful look on his face.

"When you leave, take my daughter with you." said Patrick quietly. "She's slightly younger than you are, Abigail needs to be away from here before Will takes her as his. I would rather see Abigail be with someone she can find solce with."

"Why should I take her with me?" inquired Marcello, his eyes narrowed.

"She could be of use to you as a healer." answered Patrick. "You need to be looked after, but she needs to see the world for herself and not through someone else's stories of the outside world."

"I won't take her." stated Marcello. "Even if you told me she was getting married, I won't take her with me."

"You need a healer or else you'll die out there before its your time." said Patrick. "At least consider your options before you decide completely if you want her to be left here or not."

With that, Patrick leaves without getting an answer from Marcello. The older man had a point, one that made Marcello stop and think about what he wanted to do once his injuries healed.

'Damn.' thought the raven haired man. 'He's right. I need to bring a healer. Its why _he_ was able to get out of that battle almost okay. Looks like I'll take her after all.'

"I hope you're feeling up to having tea with this bowl, Marcello." stated Abigail's voice, breaking Marcello's thoughts. "Its green tea. I hope it is not too bitter or too sweet."

"Do you know how long I'll be on bed rest?" inquired Marcello.

"I would think you'll be on bed rest for a week." answered Abigail as she handed Marcello the bowl and placed his drink on the night stand closest to him. "Unless you feel stronger by resting for five or six days. It depends on the person, really. I've seen some men with your build be down for two and a half weeks, but their injuries were much more severe. Your injuries will have you in bed for at least a week, maybe more depending on how well you're healing."


	3. Chapter 3

**Another Chance**

_**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Dragon Quest, its characters, or its storyline. Level-5 and Square Enix have all rights to the Dragon Quest world. Unless stated otherwise, any characters and storyline you don't recognize are mine.**_

_**NOTE: I am in no way saying that every person with a migraine recovers in this way. I am basing the migraine Marcello has in this chapter on my own experiences with migraines. I have discovered that, at least for me, if I don't catch a migraine fast enough I will vomit and instantaneously feel better. As I said, I am basing Marcello's migraine on my own. Each person handles migraines differently and each one act similar to the extent of having all the sensitivity. I have decided to base Marcello's migraine on my own because its how I deal with them when I either wake up with it or don't catch it fast enough.**_

Marcello had laid in bed for two more days before trying to stand up. His first day of being awake, he wasn't able to sit up on his own yet. He needed help to be able to do that action. Of course, he had to due to his injuries still being irritated and sore. On top of that, his injuries were beginning to itch and burn a little as they healed. He knew the burning would come with having medicine rubbed into his injuries, as well as them getting cleaned up. His second day, he laid in bed the entire day to give himself some time to heal a bit more.

The morning of the third day, Marcello slowly brought himself into a sitting position. He soon brought his legs over the right side of his bed, his legs aching as he moved them. The raven haired man realised he laid in bed for a long time, not moving much of his body as he did so. He winces at the pain, but knew that once he stood up and moved around that they wouldn't hurt so much. The sound of footsteps heading towards his room catures his attention as he gathered some of his strength for his attempt.

"Are you ready to stand today, Marcello?" inquired the healer's daughter, stopping in the doorway. "Do you need help doing so or do you want to try on your own?"

"I want to try on my own." stated Marcello as he glanced over his left shoulder.

"Alright." said Abigail. "I'll be right here should you need me."

"I don't think I will." stated the emerald eyed man. "I believe I'll be just fine."

Marcello slowly stood up, his right hand planting itself onto the wall for balance.

"You're the first man that thought of putting his hand onto the wall for support." said Abigail, a light chuckle appearing at the end. "Especially when you're trying to get up on your own."

Marcello grins slightly, thankful that he wasn't facing Abigail. Something about her statement made him take pride in what he knew and learned as he grew up.

'I will bring her along after all.' thought Marcello, as footsteps come towards the room. 'Even if it is for a short while.'

He let the grin drop once he stood up fully, a feeling of accomplishment taking over him. Marcello slowly made his way to the wall that sat four feet in front of him as the footsteps stop behind Abigail. He glanced her way, noting that Will stood behind Abigail. The platinum haired man gave Marcello this hateful glare, one that the raven haired man knew he sent to his brother many times over.

"Finally." he muttered as Abigail came closer.

"Well done, Marcello." stated Abigail, a grin on her face. "Now you can walk around the house and get some excerise."

Now that he thought about it, he had put on some extra weight. When his injuries didn't pose as much of a threat, he would definitely get back into shape.

"If you will excuse me, I need to go outside and relieve myself." said Marcello, taking note of how bad he needed to go outside.

"Marcello, I don't think it is wise for you to go out on your own right now." stated Abigail, worry taking over the grin she had on moments before. "It would be wise for you to have someone with you until you are mostly healed."

Marcello slowly turned more towards Abigail, an annoyed look on his features.

"I'm _not_ a child." hissed Marcello. "I'm more than capable of going outside on my own."

"After finding you unconcious in this heat?" inquired Will, finally speaking up. "You're lucky Abigail didn't leave you out there after all the problems you caused to everyone you come into contact with."

"Will, go away." hissed Abigail, turning towards the man. "I don't care if he's a king or a bastard son. I'm going to help him no matter what his crimes are or who he is!"

That took Marcello by surprise, his expression switching imediately to surprise. Not once had anyone, especially a woman, ever stood up for him. Aside from his mother, no one really stood up for him when he needed someone.

'Then again, I've always been strong willed and not one to need much help in stating my thoughts, no matter how blunt they are.' thought Marcello. 'I never really needed to have help standing up for myself.'

"Abigail, this man is a criminal." stated Will. "He's killed Goddess knows how many people, backstabbed all who have helped him, and attempted to have control over some ancient powers of the Lord of Darkness."

Marcello could saw Abigail's body become tense, anger coming off her. He wan't sure what the woman before him planned on doing to the man in the door. The emerald eyed man focused on the healer, his stance showing curiosity. Then turned to Will, his curiosity turning to annoyance as he took note of the man's growing irritation with the rookie healer.

"Will, I need your help with finding something for dinner." called Patrick's voice.

It sounded annoyed as it called to the man in the door. Will sighs as he glared at Marcello once more before he turned and left for the entrance of the house. Abigail relaxed slightly, turning to the recovering man. Marcello watched her as she walked towards him. Her body language told him that Abigail was still annoyed with Will, something Marcello could understand. He still felt his annoyance with the silver haired man, something about him not sitting right with the raven haired man. Marcello's annoyance quickly turns to curiosity as Abigail walked over to him. She gingerly wraps her arms around Marcello, leaning forward rather than making full contact with her body.

"What in the Goddess' name are you doing?" inquired Marcello, curiosity no full blown confusion.

"I sense that you're going to die if you don't change your course of action." stated Abigail. "You're on the road of self destruction and after finding you half dead, I want to help you change your life's path from death, destruction, and self destruction."

Marcello could hear the sincerity in her voice, the very real concern that seemed to come natrually to the woman gingerly hugging him. Deep down, he truly missed having human connection and it stung when he thought about it now that its been twenty years after his mother's death. Now that he thought about it, this was the first time his mother crossed his mind before his much hated half brother ruined the picture by having Marcello and his mother kicked out of the household. Being able to think about his mother without hatred clouding his mind made him realize something, something he should have realized the moment he and Angelo began to live under the same roof.

Angelo took to riling Marcello up because it always got a reaction from him. He _**always**_ gave his brother the reactions he wanted. This caused Marcello to hate himself, hating that he played into Angelo's hands. He hated himself for rewarding Angelo with such reactions, hated that he didn't see this sooner. Marcello realized that he knew he shouldn't have given Angelo said reactions over the next fifteen years. He sighed as he felt himself lift his arms, hands gently and calmly planting themselves onto Abigail's shoulders. Marcello's eyes became cloudy with many emotions, emotions he kept under forced control. Confusion, curiosity, anger, sadness, hatred, love, and hope. All of it jumbled around in his mind, causing Marcello's head to feel like it would burst into a bloody and chunky mess of brains, blood, and gore.

'As much as I don't want to admit this, Abigail's right.' thought the former templar captain as he brought Abigail to an arm's length as her hands go to his chest.

His head felt like it would explode if he didn't lay down. However, Marcello wanted to empty his bladder. He didn't know what to do at that moment, his head hurting more to the point where he couldn't think straight.

"Abby, let me watch after him for ten minutes." stated Samual as he stepped into the doorway. "I'll take care of him while you help mother by helping with the store. If he has to go outside, I can easily watch him. Mother says that he can't be left alone should his injuries open up again."

Abigail felt Marcello flinch beneath her hands.

"Are you sure, Sam?" inquired Abigail as she looked over her shoulder.

She felt the raven haired man flinch beneath her fingers again. She realizes that he seems to be in some form of pain, but couldn't say if it was from the injuries or not.

"I'm sure, Abby." said Samual. "I'll look out for him while he recovers for a bit. You go help mother."

"Okay." Abigail whispered. "If you need me, let my brother know and I'll be by your side in no time."

"I will." Marcello choked out, causing him to flinch.

He felt his stomach churn restlessly, like he ate, smelled, saw, or drank something absolutely revolting. Sensing this, Abigail gingerly leaned Marcello against the wall for support. His hands leave her shoulders, allowing her to rush over to the almost empty bucket. Bringing it over to the injured and sick man, Abigail held it up to Marcello.

"Vomit into this should you get to that point. I'll return in twenty minutes to empty it should you have emptied both the contents of your stomach and the unwanted amount of bile you've going on." whispered Abigail. "I'll also bring a damp cloth for your head later."

Marcello realized the sensitivity he developed towards light and smell, already knowing what he now had. He had five other ones before this one, all but one caused by his brother. The one that wasn't caused by Angelo was caused by a massive storm that occurred some years back, causing him to vomit once over the course of that night. Marcello felt thankful that the migraine he had would go away once he vomitted, allowing his body to rid itself of any and all invaders causing this crippling headache. After Marcello grabbed the bucket, his stomach signalled for him to empty it. Without hesitation, Abigail helped the raven haired man by holding the bucket closer to his head. This allowed Marcello to empty his stomach into it without any of it onto the floor or Abigail. The feeling that made his head feel like it would explode left him, leaving him to feel better immediately. The former templar captain felt a little weak and a little tired, but he felt better now that his body rid him of whatever caused his migraine. Samual walked over curiously, sounds no longer crippling to the former templar captain's ears.

"Abby, I can take everything from here. Just go to mother." stated Samual.

"Sam, I don't want to leave his side." Abigail said, a slight whine in her voice. "I planned on checking his injuries and changing the bandages."

"Abby, Mother needs help and I don't know which item she's asking for." stated Samual.

Abigail sighed as she took the bucket out of the room as Samual entered the room fully, taking an offensive smell with it. Marcello wiped his mouth, making a look of disgust as he did so. He never wanted to have another migraine again for the rest of his life. Samual motioned for Marcello to follow him, hoping the man wouldn't try anything on him.

"Do you know when your father will return?" inquired Marcello as he followed Samual through the house. "I have something I need to speak with him about."

"When it involves hunting, father usually returns around evening with snake and something from the market." answered Samual. "Since he has that weirdo with him, I'm going to say that he'll be back by night fall. I'll tell father you need to talk to him."

"Where are we going?" inquired Marcello.

"The same place father and I usually go to relieve ourselves." answered Samual. "Abby and mother don't go near this particualar area as they go to a different spot. Its close, but not too close."


End file.
